A Plié Made Fullmetal
by AcaiBowlFatale
Summary: Two ballet companies, one destiny. The American Ballet Company and it's members prepare for their rendezvous with the famed Mariinsky Ballet, hoping for a fruitful and harmonious collaboration. What will the future hold for them? Fullmetal/YOI Crossover Ballet AU
1. Petit Allegro

"And one, two- allongé!"

"Energy through the ends of your fingertips!"

"Make sure you're turning out from your hips, not your knees!"

"Point your toes!"

"Engage your core!"

"BALLON! "

The corrections flowed endlessly, and quite loudly, out of Ms. Izumi Curtis' mouth. She was as fierce as she was loud, accenting each correction with a sharp rap of her baton against the well-loved wooden floors of the studio. She moved like a vulture, slow, steady and with a keen eye for sickled feet and incorrect posture. It was easy to see why she was the most feared and respected ballet master of the American Ballet Company.

"That was the most pathetic attempt at petit allegro I've ever seen! Take a thirty second breather and let's take it again, from the top!" She says, with a slight glint in her dark eyes. The dancers take their short reprieve with a smile and quick, shallow breaths. This is Izumi's class after all, thirty seconds is as generous as she gets. Two young dancers face each other, heads bowed and hands on their knees as they catch their breaths, the sweat beading at their hairline and streaming down their chests.

"You know for a retired principal dancer, she sure has an insane amount of energy." The smaller of the two whispered as he pushed the damp golden strands of his hair off his face, taking great care to leave one strand sticking straight up.

"Yeah, are we sure she's still human?" The taller one spoke lowly before checking his surroundings, his short, blonde hair sticking to his forehead as he turns to look towards the front of the studio. The small one, Ed, laughed. "You're right, for all we know she's been replaced by some weird cyborg teacher bot, or maybe she's-". A sudden dark aura interrupts their whispered conversation.

"You stupid pupils want to know what I am?" Izumi says, her voice unsettlingly calm. The boys slowly turn their heads to look at their teacher, panic clearly written across their faces. "I've already told you, I'M A HOUSEWIFE!" Izumi's voice reverberates through the room, shaking the mirrors, and causing the boys to clutch their chests in shock and horror. The rest of the dancers scramble into their spots as the boys try to keep their souls from leaving their body.

"It looks like your break is over, so let us resume. From the top, with the corrections, a five, six, seven, eight!" Izumi roars as the piano resumes and she makes her way to the front of the studio, footsteps muffled by the soft landings of her pupils.

—

"Teacher was extra hard on us today, brother." the taller boy, Al says as he gently places his warm ups and shoes into his dance bag. He grabs a small towel and wipes his face, head and chest before hanging it around the back of his neck. He glances over at Ed as he zips up his bag and stands up before swinging it onto his right shoulder. "Maybe we offended her when we said she wasn't human?" He asks with a furrow of his brows and a slight frown. He takes a sip from his water bottle as he waits for Ed to finish packing up.

Ed chuckles softly as he shoves his water bottle and shoes into his bag. "No, I don't think she would be offended that easily." He says with a soft shake of his head. "If anything she's tough on us because she wants us to be at our best for when the Mariinsky comes to town. She can't have her top students shown up by some Russian brats now, can she?" He stands up slowly, feeling his muscles sigh and his joints groan at the effort. He slings his bag across his body and places his hands on his hips. "If we intend to keep our spots as the youngest soloists in the ABC then we have to put in the work." He holds up a finger, as if scolding Al.

"It's as teacher always says 'Hard work beats talent-"

"-when talent doesn't work hard." The brothers finish in unison, bursting into giggles at their synchronized imitation of Izumi. They walk in stride towards the exit of the building and onto the streets of New York's Upper West Side. They're silent for a couple of blocks before Al speaks up.

"Brother," Al starts as he looks over at Ed, amusement sparkling in his enchanting golden orbs. "Don't get offended, but you reek." he jokes, creating distance between them in case Ed decides to swing. Ed laughs, as he looks at Al with an expression of mock-offense. "Oh yeah? Well you're not doing so hot yourself! You smell like a sweaty poodle." He playfully shoves Al in the opposite direction as he breaks into a run.

"Brother! Where are you going? Why are you running?!" Al yells at Ed's quickly retreating figure as he breaks into a run to try and catch up to his surprisingly fleet-footed sibling. "Brother!" Al calls, still running after Ed, voice lost to the swift city winds.

—

Across the street, Roy Mustang and Riza Hawkeye look over at the young brothers. They share a quick look as Roy's deep chuckle breaks the comfortable silence between them. "You know, it's easy to forget that the company's best male soloists are still children." He says as he adjusts the glove on his right hand.

Riza nods her head in silent agreement as she adjusts her bag's strap back onto her right shoulder. As the ABC's principal dancers and the highest ranked individuals in the company, they had gotten to watch the Elrics as they wove effortlessly through the ranks of the company to their current place as soloists. They've become self-proclaimed thorns in Roy's side, especially Ed, taking advantage of every opportunity they might have to annoy him. However, she can't help but feel a deep mothering instinct whenever she sees them. She knows Roy has a soft spot for the boys too, but unlike her, he expresses it by riling up the smaller of the two brothers. She giggles quietly to herself as she remembers a particularly funny argument between Roy and Ed.

Roy looks over to Riza with a puzzled expression on his handsome face. "What's got you giggling like a schoolgirl, Hawkeye? Surprised I don't actually hate the kid?" He says jokingly, dark eyes shimmering with amusement, a sly smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

She laughs, a melodious sound that makes Roy's heart skip a beat. "Don't worry about it, Mustang. We all know you secretly want to adopt the Elrics, there's no need to lie." She says as she looks him dead in the eye, shooting him a smirk of her own.

Roy doesn't react at first, shocked at her playful comeback. He lets it sink in for a bit as he pushes a hand through his dark hair, ruffling the unruly layers. He doesn't say anything, but the soft smile and light blush coloring his cheeks give him away. "Well, we can't have the Elrics knowing that, now can we? It would ruin my reputation." He jokes, stopping to look wistfully at the lights of the city. They pause for a bit until Riza tugs him along and they fall back into their comfortable silence for the rest of their walk home.

.

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* * *

AN: Hi there! Just the usual reminder that I don't own these characters or these stories, I'm just a fan with too much time and lots of love! Anyways, here's the first chap to a lil passion project I've decided to entertain. Enjoy! XD

Live, Laugh, Love,

✧ ABF ✧

—


	2. Perfect Practice Makes Perfect

"Ah one ah two ah three ah four ah FIVE, straighten that supporting leg, six, seven, eight!"

Yuuri held the ending pose for a beat before his legs gave out and he fell into a heap on the floor. He'd been rehearsing the same variation for over an hour, the same jumps, turns and extensions more than burned into his mind and muscle memory. But there was something missing, it just wasn't right.

 _It still doesn't feel right._

He went through the choreography in his head, feeling the sweat stream down his back and soak deeper into the thin material of his tank top.

The quadruple pirouette into the double tour combination was still giving him some trouble, that he knew, but it wasn't technique he was lacking. He had given up many nights and mornings to make sure his technique was basically flawless. After all, Lilia wouldn't accept anything less than perfect, and he made sure to exceed her expectations.

But because of his attention to detail and choreography, it felt… robotic. He could do the choreography with his eyes closed and hanging upside down from the catwalk of the theatre. It was just that whenever he tried to connect to it, he couldn't. He had been struggling with the emotional complexity of his performance, so much so that Lilia and Yakov banished him from rehearsal until he could show them his connection to the piece. It wasn't that he was unable to emote, in fact he was well known for his ability to perform the hell out of any piece he was given. But this new piece eluded him. No matter how hard he tried, it wasn't genuine.

So that's why he's now sitting on the floor of a dimly lit studio at 1 in the morning, staring blankly at his small, lean form in the mirror. He looks back down at the floor, hanging his head in shame.

He doesn't get to wallow for long before a voice cuts through the thick silence.

"Not bad. A little less tension could work wonders for you though. A little bit of control goes a long way, you know."

He sighs deeply, before looking up. Ah yes, Victor Nikiforov. His "performance coach".

Lilia and Yakov suggested the silver-haired dancer mentor him until he met the requirements expected of a Mariinsky principal dancer, and have the piece ready in time for their visit to the States. This terrified Yuuri.

Just imagine it: Here he was, a twenty-one year old dancer, finally dancing for his dream company, the Mariinsky. He'd given up his entire social life and worked extremely hard to get here, but from the moment he arrive, he failed to meet their expectations. It hit him hard, much harder than he expected. But he pushed through, and worked even harder.

But it wasn't enough. And he knew it.

Then one day, as he was going over the variation for what seemed like the hundredth time, he was met with applause and the smell of expensive cologne catching onto the slight breeze wafting in from the door. And here's where everything got flipped, turned upside down.

He looked up from his frenzied, focused haze only to meet eyes with his idol, inspiration and long-time dance crush.

And he wanted to scream.

Maybe faint.

Scream a little more.

But before he even got a chance to react, his idol spoke up. In a soft, accented voice he had only ever heard through interviews and various video clips on Instagram, he critiqued Yuuri's performance.

"You've got a good grasp on everything and your technique is basically flawless, but I would watch the knees on your preps and landings. Not to mention your core in you turns and that tour. if you want to get around you've got to focus on keeping your body tight and aerodynamic. Oh, and you've got to relax, the tension in your hands and neck is incredibly concerning and distracting. We can't have you hurting yourself, now can we?"

THE Victor Nikiforov not only watched him dance, but he paid enough attention to give you him incredibly detailed and constructive critique.

Was he dreaming? Is this one of those weird realistic dreams? He don't know whether to laugh or cry, or pass out. He was sure of one thing though. He was very, very confused.

 _Why was Victor here?_

The silver-haired man took notice of the confused expression on Yuuri's face and laughed softly. And _oh boy,_ that laugh took the breath straight out of Yuuri's lungs. He found himself extremely distracted by the way Victor's face lit up, and the melodic tone of his laugh. I mean, how could someone be so effortlessly enchanting? What human even laughs so perfectly?

By the time he realizes that Victor was talking, he missed half of his explanation. He did happen to catch on to the words "your coach". He was instantly whipped from his shojo manga thoughts and back into the real world.

"What?" He managed to sputter out.

"Yes, I am now your performance coach. Lilia and Yakov thought it would do you some good. Besides, I love myself a good project on the side." Victor winks and Yuuri swears he can hear his bones turning into mush.

So that's how he found himself here, on the floor of a studio, at the mercy of his coach, a beautiful man who has made him do the variation twelve times in a row, with only a small water break in between.

"Take a ten second breather then get ready to do it again. You've almost got it, I can feel it."

 _I swear to katsudon, this man is out to kill me._

Yuuri takes a deep breath before hoisting himself back to standing position. His knees are weak, and his quads feel like jelly, but there's no place he's rather be.

He has to emote "love" and all of its aspects in his performance, and it's really kicking him in the butt. He's been trying to channel the deep love he has for dance, and his family, but it's just not enough.

There's still just one aspect that he's missing- sex appeal. No matter how hard he tries he ends up looking like a baby deer caught in the headlights. Or really anything other than an adult man dancing with sex appeal. Victor, bless his heart, has been trying to create connections for Yuuri to reach his emotional goal.

But so far, none of them have worked.

He sighs, running his hand through his damp, sweaty hair, pushing it off his forehead and out of his eyes. He takes a good look at himself in the mirror before hitting his opening pose.

He can do this.

He's got a month left before the Mariinsky goes overseas to visit the American Ballet Company, and even if it kills him he's going to make sure he'll make them proud.

The music starts, and Victor swears there's something different glinting in the eyes of the younger dancer. He doesn't quite know what brought it on, but he knows that he's nearing the turning point.

 _Here we go._

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AN: Hello! I've decided to come back after a sudden burst of inspiration! Anyways, here's the other side of the crossover, a lil Victuuri action for y'all. Please lemme know what you think, review, follow, comment! Thanks for reading! (◕ ω ◕✿)

-ABF


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